Barrera, 31, was wounded in the left side of her abdomen when a stray bullet ricocheted into her home on May 6.

Volusia County sheriff's deputies said neighbor Neil Cohen fired his semiautomatic assault rifle from his home some 100 feet away, trying to shoo away a dog.

The bullet passed through dense woods, punctured two of Barrera's walls and hit her as she sat at her kitchen table.

Cohen was charged with culpable negligence, a first-degree misdemeanor, for the shooting.

However, Assistant State Attorney Paul Bernardini said the court case was put on hold while officials monitored Barrera's health.

For four months, Barrera carried baby and bullet and endured the piercing pain from both with over-the-counter drugs. Doctors didn't want to risk her losing the child by performing surgery too soon.

Barrera had the choice of inducing labor, but she wanted to bring her pregnancy to term.

The family worried that the baby wouldn't be healthy or might be born dead. But Salvador, named after his father, was born a full 9 pounds, 5 ounces and without any defects.

''I was very scared in my heart that he would have problems,'' she said.

''Every night and every day, I prayed for a normal, healthy baby. I have faith, a lot of faith, in God. I cried when I saw my baby was normal.''

Now that seven weeks have passed since the birth, doctors are ready for surgery. Barrera is scheduled to go to the hospital Tuesday for the first round of exploratory surgery.

''They said they would take it out, but they won't know for sure until they check it,'' she said. ''I hope they will take it out.''

Paying her medical expenses has been difficult. Her husband, Salvador, works in a local fernery and she had worked as a teacher's aide and was studying to become a nurse. However, she hasn't been able to work since the shooting.

She added that the accused shooter, Cohen, doesn't have any insurance and hasn't been able to help her pay her expeneses.

''I'm not angry or scared about what happened,'' Barrera said. ''I'm just a little resentful because I cannot work and he's broke.''

In the meantime, she still gets comments from strangers who recognize her from media coverage of the shooting.

''All the people in the hospital and the market can't believe how perfect he is,'' she said.

''People felt like they knew me, and when people see me, they tell me they prayed for me, and that's something beautiful to me.''